If you are a cheerleading coach and one of your cheerleaders develops a mental block, it is your job to try to figure out what happened.  Sometimes it’s clear and the solution is easy.  This is especially true when it is a technical issue and the fix is a matter of tweaking something the athlete is doing. 

Of course there are the other times when the cause and the fix are not clear. As I mentioned yesterday, high stress families, especially families where feelings are not expressed or allowed or where conflict is not addressed in a healthy way, can be breeding grounds for all sorts of medical and psychological symptoms including mental blocks. (And by the way – high stress is a significant factor associated with sport injuries.)  

You will have your own way of working with blocks and it’s good to follow through with what you usually do – especially if you have had success with other cheerleaders.  But if you find the problem is not resolving or if the athlete is especially emotional, then you might want to consider assessing for family stress. So how do you do this?   (more…)

I came across this quote from an unknown author today and thought my cheerleading friends might like it:  ”Teamwork is the fuel that allows common people to produce uncommon results.”  (more…)

The latest issue of the snazzy and information-packed on-line cheerleading magazine – Entirely Cheer – is now available for your reading pleasure. I might add that it is free!  That’s right – it won’t cost you a penny to read this cheer magazine.  (To enhance your reading pleasure, be sure to use the “whole screen” feature – it is the third icon from the left at the top of the page.) The current issue contains several “Tip Sheets” such as, How to prepare for the new All-Star season; How to prepare for the new High School Cheer season; and much more.  The articles include topics on communication, hydration, sportsmanship plus a video on how to do a back walkover mount stunt!  (more…)

In my previous posts, I shared the wisdom of legendary basketball coach – John Wooden. Cheerleading coaches (and everyone, really) can learn a lot from this sage fellow.  Coach Wooden had his own ideas about criticism – who should do the criticizing, under what circumstances and how. (more…)

If we are smart, we try to learn from people smarter than us!  Cheerleading coaches have tough (and rewarding) jobs.  One of the best athletic coaches ever – John Wooden – was a master motivator.  Here is some more of his wisdom.  (more…)

This question was asked of me by a young, newly minted coach who was wondering how best to coach her team.  She had experienced coaches who yelled (and sometimes screamed) at cheerleaders and she hadn’t liked it.  According to her,  the yelling resulted in the athletes obeying out of fear and the quality of “life” on the team was not good. 

So why do some coaches yell and scream?  Well, let’s look at this. (more…)